Fabric Markers
Water Soluble: These markers are usually blue and will disappear after getting the
fabric wet. It isn't always necessary to wash the item to remove the ink. Soaking the piece
or spraying it with a water bottle and letting it air dry works fine on most fabrics. I have
heard that the ink can a fade from air humidity or moisture from your hands, but isn't
removed completely until it becomes wet.
Air Soluble: The ink from some of these pens disappears within 24 hours. How many of us can finish a project in 24 hours?! I have heard that keeping your project in a ziplock bag can make the ink last longer.
Fabric Pencils & Soapstone
Most fabric pencils are made to brush off the fabric - as does the soapstone marker. Others
may require washing.
Soapstone can be sharpened like a pencil, allowing you to make very fine lines. It has a removable holder and needs to be sharpened with a hand-held sharpener. The markings stay on for a long time, much better than chalk, but rub off with a piece of cloth.
Dressmaker's Carbon
Most of the marks made from these papers are meant to come off with a fabric eraser
(I don't think I've seen one of those before) or a damp cloth. Neither of which would work
for remvoing marks peeking out from under your embroidery, so it would probably be necessary
to gently wash your finished piece.
I don't know about you, but I really don't like using a tracing wheel. For large, simple shapes it would work fine, but there's no way to do small motifs or lots of detail with that pointy little wheel. This is a method I don't recommend. I tried it, placing some fine grain sandpaper under the fabric. I placed the carbon paper on top of the material, and then placed my design over that. It didn't work, even using a lot of force. The embossing tool works nicely if it only has to press one layer of paper, but it couldn't make a dent in two. There might be a way to get the design onto the back of the carbon paper that won't dislodge the color on the front until you want to transfer it, but I haven't figured it out yet. Any ideas?
Carbon Paper PROS:
- It's cheap and can be found at any fabric store.
Carbon Paper CONS:
- It smudges.
- Requires a tracing wheel to really work properly.
- Not a method for complex, detailed images.
Tailor's Chalk
Draw the image as you would with the pencils or markers. I haven't tried this method yet,
so I really can't say if it works well. Judging by the size and shape, it looks a little
awkward - especially for lots of little lines or curves. If you've tried tailor's chalk,
let us know what you think.
Pouncing
The pouncing powder (or inking powder) can be found at art supply stores. For dark fabrics
powdered white chalk will work. One stitcher suggests using cinnamon instead. Apparently it
works on light or dark fabrics.
After tracing an image, pin the paper to a piece of felt or a couple of layers of fabric. Use a tapestry or yarn needle (or similar sharp, pointy object) to poke holes along the lines. You want a hole large enough to let the powder through, but not so large that you'll end up with smudges instead of dots on your fabric. Also, make sure the holes aren't too close together or the paper might tear.
Note: You can poke holes in the tissue while it's attached to the final fabric (with a fabric pad or piece of felt underneath). You'll save a step by not having to take the tissue from the felt and then attaching it to your fabric, but you also may end up putting unnecessary holes in your fabric.
- Take the tracing paper with the poked holes and pin or baste it to your fabric.
- Using a small make-up brush, cotton ball, or bit of felt, gently dab or rub the pouncing
powder over the design.
- Remove the paper and gently remove any excess powder. At this point you can try to
embroider over the powdered lines, however, connecting the dots with a fabric marker or pencil
will ensure a design that lasts as long as you need it to.
